


Morning Ride

by lasairfhiona



Series: Fiona Saga [13]
Category: Highlander: The Series
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-04-23
Updated: 2011-04-23
Packaged: 2017-10-18 13:05:22
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,567
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/189177
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lasairfhiona/pseuds/lasairfhiona
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Fiona goes for a ride in the rain</p>
            </blockquote>





	Morning Ride

Dingle Peninsula Ireland 2003

Joe stood just inside the door, looking out onto the rain-soaked fields. He couldn't believe she'd gone riding at dawn in this weather, considering they had just arrived late last night. His family was Irish and he'd been to Ireland many times, but Fiona wanted to show him her homeland through her eyes. Zig zaging them across the country. Taking him to the ancient cities and sites along their journey from Belfast to Dingle.

After a tour of Belfast, they headed west across the countryside towards Raphoe and the Beltany stone circle. He waited, sitting on a rock in the center of the circle as she walked around the outside, touching each stone as if she were greeting an old friend. When they departed, she left a small piece of silver on one of the stone. He knew, beyond a shadow of a doubt that they would be returning here often. He didn't need to hear her whispered worlds to know this place was special to her. He could see it in how she changed before his eyes. It was almost as if he was seeing the Fiona of the past.

From Raphoe, they went to Galway and looked up his ancestral home then continued east, back toward Dublin with stops at Clonmacnoise and the Newgrange complex. After a couple days in Dublin being tourists and shopping they headed to Glendalough, and then Cashel.

In Cashel she walked him around the ruins, telling him about how it used to be before the "church" was built. She took him to the glen where she met Methos, now 1001 years ago and he could almost imagine her then from the way she had described the day in full detail. Then she brought him 'home'. To Dingle.

He woke this morning expecting to find her curled next to him, but found an empty bed instead. He put his legs on and paused only to grab his jeans before going in search of Fee. He figured he'd find her in the kitchen with a cup of tea planning her day. Unable to find her, he'd walked through the kitchen again and this time he saw her note propped up on his cup next to the coffee maker.

 _Dearest Joe,_

 _You were sleeping so soundly I didn't have the heart to wake you.  
I've gone for a ride through the fields and along the cliffs. I'll be   
back in a couple hours. Don't worry, the pony is sound and   
I know where I'm going._

 _I Love you,  
F  
_

She'd put a time on her note and it was now three hours since she'd left. He was starting to get worried. Since he'd gotten up the rain had started to come down heavier now and it was almost impossible to see past the stone fence that separated the house and buildings from the sheep that roamed the fields beyond.

He didn't know how long he stood in the doorway when he saw her ride through the gate. He could tell by the way she sat all hunched over in the saddle she was drenched and cold.

Fiona rode through the gate and stopped the pony near the stable. She was soaked, cold to the bone, but exhilarated nevertheless. She'd left that morning when the sky was light enough to see the paths and galloped along the trail that led to the cliffs. She followed them for a while, then turned and headed inland, riding across the fields and sheep paddocks before she turned and headed for home. The rain caught up with her about the time she turned back into the fields. She hadn't minded the rain. Rain meant life.

Quickly, she unsaddled the pony and put it in its stall with a blanket. Coming out of the small barn, she saw Joe standing in the doorway of the house. She wondered how long he'd been waiting. She knew she was running late but she hadn't been able to tear herself away from the ride. The land had been calling to her since she returned to Ireland. Even though she had fun playing tourist with Joe, she had been itching to get home again.

When he straightened and moved into the door to wait for her, she noticed his scanty attire. Fiona smiled as she got closer, thinking how good he looked standing there in just his jeans. She wondered was the top button undone--he usually forgot to button it up when he walked around the house in the mornings. Of course, he also knew it drove her nuts, and sometimes, when he knew they had a little extra time, he'd do it on purpose.

Pulling off her coat and hat, Fiona ducked under the eaves and shook them out. Hanging them quickly on the hook outside the door, she walked into his waiting embrace.

She pulled back and looked at him. "I'm getting you all wet."

"I don't care. I was worried about you. You're soaked and shivering, come on, let's get these wet things off and get you into a warm bath," Joe suggested as he plucked at her soaked sweater.

"Will you join me?" she asked with an inviting smile..

Joe laughed at her ploy. "No, but I will make you a cup of mint tea and something hot to eat."

"Spoil sport," she laughed.

Joe kissed her quickly and shoed her to the shower. "I'll come help you dry off later."

"Promise?" Fiona teased.

Joe patted her on the backside and sent her down the hall to the bedroom and bath.

She skittered down the hall and slipped into the master bathroom. Reaching over into the tub, she turned the taps on and adjusted the temperature, letting the tub fill as she stripped off the wet clothing that clung to her like a second skin.

Joe shook his head at her retreating back then turned and whistled softly as he returned to the kitchen. He searched the cupboards and finally found the kettle to put on to boil. While it was heating, he found her caretakers had stocked the refrigerator with food and milk. He pulled out several eggs and a frying pan and whipped up an omelet he adorned with cheese and fresh mushrooms he found in the crisper.

When he was finished, he put her breakfast on a tray that he balanced neatly on his shoulder as he made his way down the hall to the bedroom. Once he had everything in place on the nightstand, he headed toward the bathroom, knowing she'd fallen asleep in the tub she usually did when she went for a soak. Walking into the bathroom, he found his prediction held true.

Fiona laid back in the tub with her hair spilling out over the rim and falling like an ebony curtain down the side of the cobalt-colored enamel tub. The bubbles hid the rest of her from view but Joe didn't need to see her to know what lay under the foam. He knew.

Joe reached out to stroke her cheek, "Honey, breakfast is waiting in the bedroom."

Fiona woke with a slight start and sat straighter in the tub, with the water coming to just above her breasts. "Huh? Oh, breakfast. Right. Let me rinse off and get out, then we can go eat."

The water and bubbles cascaded down her body as she stood. He handed her a towel and watched as she dried off quickly and grabbed Joe's robe to wrap herself in. She'd known as well as he did that if she didn't put something on then their breakfast would grow cold before they got to it. He'd turned down the bed and lit another fire.

Crawling into bed, she let Joe pour her a cup of tea then feed her bits of omelet as they talked about her ride.

"Mmmmm, this is good. You do such good things in the kitchen," she complimented him.

"I do pretty good other places too," Joe commented suggestively.

"Oh yes." Fiona smiled. She knew what other places Joe was good in…

Their breakfast finished, and the tray moved to the bed stand, Fiona curled against him, content to be wrapped in his arms. "I always feel this incredible sense of peace when I come home. It hasn't even been ten years since I was here last but it feels like it was yesterday," she said quietly.

"It's probably because you've owned it for so long."

"It's more than that. This area is where I grew up, this is where I was taught, and this is where I died for the first time. This place is as much a part of me as music is a part of you."

"I can understand that," Joe told her as he pulled her into his arms. He held her quietly for a few moments before she shifted and continued.

"I've shown you so much of what Ireland means to me and the places that are important these past couple of weeks. Here and to the cliffs is mine, it's who I am and what I am. I've bled for this land and would do so again if the need arose."

"Fight as in go to war? I thought you didn't believe in wars?" he asked. Her vehemence surprised him. It wasn't like the Fiona he knew, but then he'd seen other parts of her he hadn't known existed since they arrived in Ireland.

"I don't, but if it means losing my home or losing this land I would fight any army to keep this place sacred. Did you know that pilgrims used to come to the mountain to worship? The land I own is cut in two by an ancient pilgrimage road. I'll take you up to the sites once the weather clears."

"I'd like to see them. I know how much they mean to you."

"Do you?" she asked, almost as if she didn't believe he could.

"Yes Fee, I do. I can see it in your expression when you talk about being here. I'm almost sorry I didn't bring you home sooner."

"You had important things to do and finish. And you weren't ready to leave the Watchers then."

"It was hard to leave when I did, but at least I left because I was ready too and not because Jack Shapiro or anyone else forced me out. This new Watcher hierarchy is making great strides to mend the wrongs done by Peter Horton and Jack's council of vengeance."

"And Joe, don't forget, you haven't completely retired--you still do consulting and you are my de facto Watcher."

Joe tried to refute her comment but she didn't let him. "Don't tell me you aren't -- don't forget I know you all too well. Besides, I have my own contacts in the Watchers."

"I give up." Joe threw up his hands in mock defeat. She wasn't really supposed to know he'd been her Watcher but if there was anyone to tell the truth about who she was it might as well be him, the man who loved her.

Fiona snuggled against him and giggled.

"What are you laughing about, woman?" Joe asked, trying to sound indignant.

"Did you think that you could keep it a secret that you are you doing my Chronicle?"

"No, not really. But I thought I'd tell you about it later and not when we were laying in bed."

"Oh, my dear, what better time to discuss our lives and future?"

"I guess you're right," he said as he kissed the top of her head.

They curled deeper into each other's arms and continued to talk about the Watchers, Ireland, and life in general. Moments of silence were filled with tender touches and feather light kisses.

The rain continued to beat down on the glass, cutting them off from the outside world as the moments of silence turned to minutes and those minutes stretched longer and longer. A touch, a gliding finger or two slowly turned up the passion that lay beneath the surface. Actions mirrored by the other. Words turned to whimpers and moans. Bodies shifted, pressing closer together and finally merging in a coming home. This was what it was about, their love, their passion, not just for each other but for life in general.

As they lay sated in each others arms, Joe felt a completeness he hadn't felt in a long time, including the six years they had already been living together in Seacouver. Maybe she was right about the magic of this land.

He ran his finger down her cheek and smoothed back an errant strand of hair. Lauren nor any of the women who came after never came close to giving him the intimacy and completeness he felt with this tiny, immortal woman. Her spirit was so encompassing he sometimes wondered if he was worthy of her. It didn't matter that Jim, Methos, and Bryan had told him they had never seen her as happy as she was with him. He periodically thought they were just humoring him until he'd had a long conversation with Jim one night over a few too many beers.

Joe thought back to that particular Eternal Flame party when he and Jim had spent most of the evening together getting drunk. He'd been going through one of his insecure stages about his relationship with Fiona, and Jim sat him down and told him a few good home truths about her. Jim told stories about the times Fiona had been his refuge when he was separated from Bryan and she'd helped him face his demons and then kicked his butt straight back to Bryan. He also told about his first meeting with her with her teacher in Brocelinde France in a forest sacred to Druids at a holy place spring for women and how she helped heal him and taught him how to heal others. He listen to Jim talk, fascinated by the stories of Fee and the side of her he'd never seen, although Jim was quick to point out to him he really *had* known that part of her. It was her loyalty to her friends and her belief in love that made her the person Joe had fallen in love with. It had taken some time for him to believe some of the things Jim has shared with him that night. For instance, Jim told him she wanted to take Joe to the grove where she'd met Methos, and he knew from Fee herself she'd never taken anyone to that grove except Jim when she and Methos were hand fasted. It wasn't until she actually guided him through Cashel to where the sacred grove still stood that he actually believed what Jim had told him. Only now as he lay motionless with her curled in his arms did the final pieces of what he was told about her fall into place, he knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that she was with him for the duration. Even if he didn't always understand it, he was now certain she would remain.

He let his thoughts of her past drift as he pulled her closer. Holding her close, he listened to her breathing while she slept. Soon the sound of the rain pounding on the roof lulled him to sleep as well.

 

Finis


End file.
